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IT’S NOT ALWAYS easy to teach a young child how to brush and floss. Little kids are balls of energy with no attention span, and a brushing session is likely to go awry. We have a few tips to help out frazzled parents.

1. Prioritize brushing. We shouldn’t treat it like an irritating chore, because our kids will pick up on that. Set an example of brushing and flossing being an unskippable and important part of the morning and evening routine.
2. Brush wherever works! Don’t feel like brushing can only happen in the bathroom. If it’s easier to do somewhere else, that’s great!
3. The routine is more important than having toothpaste. If the toothpaste tube is empty or missing or its contents were turned into an art project, brush anyway! Don’t miss a day just for the toothpaste.
4. Children are more likely to like and use a toothbrush that they picked out themselves, so let them pick theirs!
5. When possible, brush in front of the mirror. That’s where the kids will be brushing once they’re doing it on their own. In the meantime, it helps them feel more involved in the process.
6. Make brushing fun! The more the grown-ups act like brushing is fun, the happier the kids will be to cooperate. Keep up a good attitude about it and help them enjoy it by playing fun music to time their two minutes of brushing.

The content on this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of qualified health providers with questions you may have regarding medical conditions.

IN THE MIDDLE AGES, the English didn’t understand much about cavities or gum disease, but they did put a huge emphasis on having fresh breath. Why? Because, not knowing how germs work, they believed it was the actual bad smell that carried disease.

The Fresh Breath of Middle English Literary Characters

Almost all dental care in Medieval England was about smells. This practice even made it into the Canterbury Tales, where Chaucer’s characters chew cardamom and licorice to keep their breath smelling clean. A mixture of aniseed, cumin, and fennel was sometimes recommended to women.

Dental Woes of Medieval England

What dental problems were they living with while focusing mainly on breath? Fortunately, there wasn’t much sugar to cause cavities in the diet of Medieval England. Unfortunately, small particles of stone would get into their bread from the millstones they used to grind flour, and that caused severe erosion. Most adults would lose four to six teeth in their lifetimes.

Treatment for Alleged “Tooth Worms”

Things got really weird if you ever had a toothache. Physicians believed they were caused by tiny worms, and remedies included myrrh and opium. Those were expensive, though, so a cheaper option was to burn a candle very close to the tooth so the alleged worms would fall out into a basin of water.

For the sake of our teeth, we’re glad we don’t live back then!

DO YOU KNOW what the parts of the human tooth are? We’d like to give you a quick tooth anatomy lesson because the more patients know about their teeth, the better they will understand the importance of good dental health habits like brushing, flossing, and avoiding sugary treats. We’ll start in the crown and work our way down to the roots.

The Three Layers of the Dental Crown

Everything visible of a tooth above the gums is the crown, and it consists of three layers. Let’s take a closer look at each one.

Enamel

The outermost layer of the tooth is the enamel layer. Tooth enamel is mostly composed of inorganic hydroxyapatite crystals, which make it the hardest substance in the entire body. We need it to be that way so that we can chew a lifetime’s worth of food!

However, because it’s inorganic, enamel can’t repair or replace itself if it is eroded or damaged too much. It’s also extremely vulnerable to acid. That’s why brushing, flossing, cutting back on acidic and sugary foods and drinks, and regular professional cleanings are so important!

Dentin

The next layer of the crown is the dentin, which is very similar to bone. It’s more yellowish than enamel and there’s more of it in adult teeth than baby teeth (if you’ve noticed that brand new adult teeth seem more yellow than baby teeth, that’s why). Microscopic tubules run through the dentin so that the nerves in the center of the tooth can detect temperature changes. When the enamel erodes, these become exposed and cause tooth sensitivity.

The Pulp Chamber

The core of the tooth is the pulp chamber, where the blood vessels and nerves are. The pulp is what makes a tooth alive and how we feel the temperature of our food. It’s also how we feel pain when something’s wrong with the tooth. Don’t ignore tooth pain; it’s the body’s natural warning sign that it’s time to see the dentist!

The Roots of the Teeth

Underneath the gumline are the roots of our teeth, which are longer than the crowns and anchored in the jawbone. They are cushioned and held in place by the periodontal membrane between them and the bone. Roots don’t have enamel to protect them; the gum tissue does that (as long as it’s healthy) and they are coated in a calcified layer called cementum. At the tip of each root is a tiny hole through which blood vessels and nerves can reach the pulp chamber.

Keep Those Teeth Healthy From the Roots to the Crowns!

Every part of the tooth, from the enamel to the pulp, from the crown to the supporting periodontal structures, needs to stay healthy. Keep brushing and flossing to protect the enamel and gums, and don’t forget your regular dental appointments!

Our patients’ smiles are the best!

The content on this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of qualified health providers with questions you may have regarding medical conditions.